Speaking about the price hike, Yadvinder Singh Guleria, Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing, HMSI said, "We will update all our models in 2017 as per BSIV norms. With that there will be price hike also in the range of Rs 400 to Rs 1000 depending upon on which segment that model is available." Guleria also stated that the price hike will affect motorcycles more than scooter, which is the company's core selling two-wheeler and the price hike will not go beyond Rs. 1000 for BSIV upgrades.
That being said, Honda is in fact one of the first motorcycle manufacturers in the country to have a BSIV compliant engine in place, which was introduced on the CB Hornet 160R last year. The company will gradually update all its models in the following months.
Talking about its preparation for the much awaited festive season, HMSI said that the company is ready to take on the overwhelming demand that is witnessed during the said period. Guleria stated that HMSI's new Gujarat facility, which only manufactures scooters, has already reached in peak capacity of 12 lakh units by August 31.
Honda already has a stock for 35 days for the festive season and has a target of retailing over 10 lakh motorcycles and scooters in the April-October period, which makes for the first half of the financial year.
Banking on its scooter sales, HMSI has already registered a growth of 21 per cent during the April-August period, while it is eyeing an annual growth of 20-22 per cent this fiscal. The figures are expected to be higher than the overall industry's growth during the same period.
